As the Golden Lion's airborne fleet stormed into the skies above Marineford, shockwaves rippled through both the Marines and the Whitebeard Pirates alike—none had expected the Golden Lion to have concealed such a trump card within the islands.
With tens of thousands of rampaging beasts flooding the battlefield, the Marines now faced their most dire situation since the war began.
It wasn't just the sheer destructive power of this monstrous horde. The Whitebeard Pirates were already driving forward from the bay, while the airborne fleet of pirate ships, numbering in the dozens, loomed ominously overhead, yet to unleash their assault.
Land, sea, and air—all three forces bore down upon them at once.
The chaotic stampede of the rampaging creatures tore through the plaza, deepening the furrows in Sengoku's brow.
Shifting his gaze, he focused on the Whitebeard Pirates charging toward the square.
Perhaps the true turning point of this war was not Whitebeard shattering the island with all his might, but rather Maude's act of shifting the island in an attempt to wipe out the Whitebeard Pirates in one fell swoop.
That move alone had created a window of opportunity for the Whitebeard Pirates, a chance to counterattack from the brink of defeat.
Were it not for Maude's series of dazzling performances throughout the battle…
One might even suspect he was orchestrating the entire conflict for his own ends.
"At this point, we can only settle this with sheer force."
Sengoku let out a deep sigh in his heart.
Once the encirclement plan fell apart, any further strategy became meaningless. Now, victory or defeat could only be decided through brute strength.
...
In the Bay.
"That damn Golden Lion…"
Even Whitebeard, who had weathered countless storms, couldn't help but feel a tinge of surprise at the monstrous army rampaging across the plaza.
Recalling what Golden Lion had said when he escaped from Impel Down twenty years ago and came to his ship…
It was only now that Whitebeard realized—Golden Lion had spent two decades in hiding, all for the sole purpose of creating this formidable beast army.
"Foolish as it may have been…"
Watching as the Marine forces were forced to divert half their strength to deal with the rampaging creatures, Whitebeard had to admit that Golden Lion's painstaking preparations were proving to be a decisive factor in this battle.
Perhaps… this could even be the catalyst for the fall of Marine Headquarters.
"Advance into the plaza!"
Despite his worsening condition, Whitebeard gripped Murakumogiri tightly, preparing to clear a path for his sons.
The vibrations of his quake powers began to gather on his blade.
...
Above Marineford.
Golden Lion raised a hand and waved it downward.
The airborne pirate fleet, suspended high in the sky, suddenly scattered into a semi-circular formation, completely surrounding Marineford from all directions—except for the bay.
On every ship, countless cannons had already taken aim at the Marines below.
"I can barely hold myself back…"
A pirate stationed on one of the airships struggled to suppress the urge to fire the cannons.
Raining cannonfire upon Marine Headquarters from above? If word got out, it would sound like the most ridiculous joke in history.
Yet at this very moment, it was about to become reality.
Swallowing nervously, the pirate stared at the cannon in front of him, his eyes alight with excitement.
"Ha! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd get to bombard Marine Headquarters like this!!!"
"Our captain wasn't lying after all!!! Destroying Marineford will shake the entire world to its core!!! And we're the ones making it happen!!!"
"I've wanted to wipe out those damn Marines for so long! Hahaha!!!"
Similar conversations erupted across every ship in the fleet.
The pirates who had responded to Golden Lion's summons were now filled with exhilaration and anticipation for what was to come.
They firmly believed that Golden Lion would lead them to the pinnacle of the world!
Their unwavering faith in him stemmed from his legendary feats—the pirate who once single-handedly devastated half of Marineford, the first man in history to escape from Impel Down. It was these very accomplishments that had cemented his legend.
If it had been anyone else issuing this call to arms, they wouldn't have even considered it. They would've simply dismissed that person as a fool.
In other words—
Only Golden Lion could have reassembled his fearsome airborne fleet in such a short time.
And only Golden Lion would stake everything he had on the sole objective of destroying Marine Headquarters.
"Jihahahaha…!"
As the airborne fleet once again displayed its might after decades, Golden Lion was brimming with confidence.
His laughter was the signal to fire.
A thunderous roar erupted.
A storm of black cannonballs streaked through the sky, whistling as they tore through the air, descending upon the execution platform like a torrential downpour.
Golden Lion's fleet had unleashed an overwhelming bombardment, one capable of blanketing all of Marineford in destruction.
And in doing so, they paid no heed to the rampaging creatures they had just unleashed on the battlefield, nor to Marco, who fought alone in the plaza. Even Ace, shackled by Seastone atop the execution platform, was utterly disregarded.
This was exactly what Marco had feared.
Golden Lion's sole purpose was to annihilate Marine Headquarters.
Under this premise, his forces indeed served as a powerful aid to the Whitebeard Pirates.
But at the same time, in his quest to destroy Marineford, Golden Lion cared nothing for Ace's survival.
The sheer number of descending cannonballs surpassed even the Buster Call several times over.
On the ground, the rampaging beasts continued their devastation.
At the bay, Whitebeard was gathering his strength.
The Marines, who had once seemed assured of victory, now faced a dire predicament within mere minutes.
Biu—!
In this critical moment, the normally sluggish Kizaru was the first to act.
His body instantly transformed into light, shooting into the air before reverting to his human form.
"Hmmm~~ So many cannonballs… quite troublesome~~"
Despite his leisurely tone, Kizaru had already formed the stance for Yasakani no Magatama.
Brilliant light radiated from his fingertips as an unending barrage of energy bullets surged forward, intercepting the incoming cannonfire.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sky ignited with explosions as every cannonball was obliterated before reaching the ground.
From Kizaru's hands had emerged the most absolute form of anti-air defense, nullifying the bombardment of dozens of warships.
...
At the same time.
"Ara ara, throwing down this many creatures all at once… that's a bit much."
Aokiji flickered onto the plaza, sending out a web of icy tendrils that silently snaked toward the fiercest of the rampaging beasts.
"Time to chill out."
The moment his words fell, the beasts closest to him were frozen solid in an instant.
With two Admirals now taking action, the enemy's overwhelming assault was swiftly curtailed.
And at that moment, Whitebeard's blade came crashing down from the front of the plaza.
Crack—!
The earth-shaking power of his attack surged toward the square.
"Watch out! It's Whitebeard's attack!"
The Marines near the bay paled.
Doflamingo and the other Warlords instinctively avoided the incoming shockwave.
Just as the quake force was about to strike the plaza, a massive figure emerged from the rubble—Oars Jr.'s corpse, his body mangled by countless massive boulders.
Clearly, Maude had once again animated Oars Jr.'s body with a portion of his shadow power.
The quake force crashed into Oars Jr.
Despite the devastating impact, his massive form remained rooted in place, as if deeply embedded into the battlefield itself.
Just like that—
Under Maude's control, Oars Jr.'s body withstood Whitebeard's full-force shockwave.
"He blocked it!!!"
The Marines erupted in cheers, eyes locked onto Maude.
With Kizaru and Aokiji repelling the fleet's bombardment and containing the beast army, and Maude intercepting Whitebeard's devastating attack—
The situation wasn't as hopeless as it had seemed.
"..."
Whitebeard silently stared at the young man standing in his path.
For some reason…
He felt a sense of foreboding from this upstart.
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